The Kent County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO)is reminding individuals that drones are more than just machines equipped with cameras: they have the potential to rescue lives.
Earlier this week, KCSO conducted training on how drones, such as the Matrice 300, can aid in water rescues by releasing life jackets and other necessary supplies to individuals in the water.
“We utilize it for various purposes, including search and rescue, naturally, as well as other functions such as mapping incidents, numerous different applications that we can apply it to,” said Deputy Tyler Poirier.
Public Information Officer Sergeant Scott Dietrich states that there are many capabilities the KCSO has with drones that people are unaware of.
“These are utilized for numerous purposes within the sheriff’s office, which enhances the accuracy of our reports, enables faster life-saving actions, and allows for quicker responses to incidents,” he stated.
The drone is used in cases involving missing individuals, severe and fatal accidents, where it can precisely map the entire accident site, or when officers need to enter a building.
“That provides us with a clearer understanding of the tools we may require when we arrive, and how we will properly and safely navigate that scenario,” Dietrich stated.
KCSO operates 14 drones, with 16 pilots who hold FAA certification and are assigned to various departments.
Poirier mentions that as soon as they remove the drone from its case, it can be operational within one to one and a half minutes. After that, the drone can ascend at speeds reaching up to 30 miles per hour.
“If you have someone who is, say, 50 feet, 100 feet away from the shore, this drone still has the ability to reach them, and it’s going to be any person trying to get onto a boat, dealing with the current or anything like that, so you can get that life jacket out there and provide the safety and assistance they need to get back to shore as quickly as possible,” he said.
Dietrich mentions that these drones can also be utilized when the ice is covered in frost.
“If the ice isn’t thick enough, we can’t immediately send a boat. We can fly one of these drones over and release a life jacket, which makes things much safer for the officers and the people we’re trying to rescue,” he said.
When Poirier joined KCSO, they didn’t have this technology. However, it has now transformed the situation.
This clearly indicates that they are not merely for surveillance. Clearly, they are present for various other purposes, such as mapping accidents, aiding in life-saving operations, and searching for missing individuals,” he stated. “These are tools that are essential and required.
This week marked Poirier’s initial session with the dive team, although Poirier mentioned that the Technical Services Unit must participate in monthly drone training to maintain their proficiency.
We were using the drop kit. We were out there with the dive team and training with them, learning how to operate it. And since, in my case, I haven’t had to use it yet, but it’s better to have it and not need it, you know,” he said. “So getting up to speed on the training, making sure everyone is on the same page. So if that moment comes, and with all the bodies of water here, that moment will eventually arrive, I’ll be prepared, and the team will be ready.
Poirier emphasizes that trust is essential when operating the drone. He mentions that it requires a team to handle the flight and monitoring, ensuring the drone doesn’t collide with anything, and that it’s about obtaining the right information or reaching the correct location.
The drone also facilitates access to areas that deputies cannot reach.
“Often, our deputies rush straight into a situation without knowing what to expect. For example, they might go deep into the woods and find someone who is injured, or a deputy could get hurt. It’s unclear if they need a medical kit right away, and it would take longer for a deputy to bring one to them. Instead, putting the medical kit on a drone, flying it over, and dropping it would be faster. Additionally, the drone could serve as a safety net by helping guide them out of the woods if they’re lost, or by calling for more officers to the location where someone needs assistance,” Dietrich said.
Dietrich was personally aided by a drone while tracking a suspect in the woods and losing their trail.
“It was completely dark. I had my flashlight with me, yet I still couldn’t see where they disappeared to. There wasn’t a sound to be heard. I was certain he was concealed somewhere in the forest,” he explained.
With help from the drone team, they informed him that the suspect was within 20 feet, concealed behind a log where Dietrich couldn’t spot him.
And that just highlights the safety feature of me being able to walk around in that area, in the woods, without knowing where this person is. But because of that, I was able to safely move around that log and get a view of the suspect. They were able to use night vision to see if he was armed or not,” he said. “So I believe it’s safer overall for the community, for the suspects, and for our department.
